The year 1992 had proved to be the most successful year in Banc One Corporation's history. Its highlights included (1) the completion of a series of acquisitions that made Banc One the nation's ninth largest bank, (2) a 32% increase in earnings that extended the bank's record of consecutive annual earnings-per-share increases to 24 years, and (3) a 10-year average return on equity and assets that placed it first among the 25 largest U.S. banks. In 1991, Institutional Investor termed the firm "America's best-run bank."